Mark Mangino will have a lot of tough decisions to make with his Kansas University football team during the offseason.

The Jayhawks must find a replacement for senior quarterback Bill Whittemore. Will it be freshman Adam Barmann, or will Mangino sign junior-college standout Jason Swanson who was expected to make a campus visit today for the regular-season finale against Iowa State?

Can freshman kicker Scott Webb unseat veteran Johnny Beck and walk-on Jerod Brooks? Just as importantly, can KU find the personnel to fill the gaps in its sieve-like defensive line?

Intriguing questions, but the most interesting player to watch next spring might be red-shirt freshman receiver Charles Gordon, who has split time at cornerback the last two weeks along with freshman running back John Randle.

“There are a lot of things that we have to weigh in the offseason and when we get to spring ball,” said Mangino, who made the moves to bolster a struggling secondary. “We have to think about who else is developing at their positions both on offense and defense that are already in our program and also what we can recruit to those positions that will be able to play soon.

“We don’t have all of the variables in the equation yet, so it’s hard to say. I’m going to put those young men in a position that they feel comfortable with and what best helps our football team.”

Gordon has given Mangino a lot to think about. The Carson, Calif., standout set KU freshman records for single-game receptions (nine, twice) and single-season receptions (50) and receiving yards (624). His 50 receptions lead KU and rank 12th in the Big 12 Conference.

“I love offense and making plays,” Gordon said. “But whatever coach thinks is best, I’ll do.”

Good thing. In addition to his role as a starting receiver, Gordon has made eight tackles, including a sack, in the last two weeks as a backup corner. He also has broken up two passes.

KU freshman Charles Gordon attempts to elude a Kansas State defender. Gordon leads Kansas in receptions, is among the nation's leaders in punt returns and has added playing cornerback to his duties the last two weeks.

Add it all up and Gordon figures he plays between 80 and 90 snaps a game.

Uh, Charles, what about special teams?

“That doesn’t include special teams,” said Gordon, who ranks sixth in the league and 17th in the country with a punt-return average of 13.5 yards per attempt.

Mangino has an aide chart the number of snaps Gordon plays on both sides of the ball and the number of downs he plays consecutively.

“He means so much to our offense, and he makes so many plays,” Mangino said. “He can break a game open with one play. He will get repetitions on defense. I’m not going to put him into a position where he is fatigued in the fourth quarter and suffer a senseless injury.

“That’s what I’m trying to guard against. I want to win and the kids want to win and we will do anything we can in our power, but I don’t want to put him in harm’s way because he still has to a lot of football to play for us. After talking with our offensive and defensive coaches I make a decision on where I want to cap his plays.”

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Coaches also carefully choreograph Gordon and Randle’s whereabouts during practices and meetings to make sure they are prepared for all their roles.

“Everything’s all planned out,” Gordon said. “I picked up the offensive and defensive schemes easy. I’m just trying to do whatever I can to help the team. It’s not a big deal.”

It is to Mangino. KU is pushing Gordon with Big 12 coaches and media as a candidate for conference freshman of the year.

“Charles Gordon sure is a talented young player,” Mangino said. “He’s a red-shirt freshman and broke the freshman reception record here at KU and still has a game to play. He is one of the top punt-return guys in the conference and maybe in the nation. We have played him over on defense a little bit, and he makes tackles, he had a sack, a pass breakup, a bunch of tackles and made some nice plays. He is really establishing himself as one of the most versatile and talented young players in the Big 12 conference.”

Not that Gordon was interested in awards or records. What did he think about breaking the school’s freshman receiving records?

“I didn’t even know it until I read it in the paper,” he said. “It let me know that if I keep working hard things will happen.”

Ah, but what position will Gordon be working at next season? At 5-foot-10 and 170 pounds, he might be more suited to defensive back if he wants to play at the next level.

Next level? Next year? Gordon was focused on the next game. The Jayhawks (5-6 overall, 2-5 Big 12) need a victory in today’s 1 p.m. Senior Day game against Iowa State (2-8, 2-6) at Memorial Stadium to become bowl eligible.

“We want to win for our seniors and get to a bowl,” he said. “We worked all year for it. We want to see all the hard work pay off.”